Page 111 of The Duke's Mysterious Lover
“Bonkinbone estate allows for the inheritance by daughters, Kit.” He forced himself to meet her eyes, to accept the anger blazing there. Anger directed athim. “As yer father’s legitimate child, ye will be the next Countess of Bonkinbone, unless he fathers a legitimate son.”
Kit snorted, hands still on her hips. “Unlikely. He hasn’t seen my mother in years, and he can’t remarry if—Dio Benedetto, he was planning on marrying Lady Emma! He was going to knowingly become a bigamist?” She shook her head. “This is…Thorne, I don’t know if…”
His chest ached at being unable to comfort her. It was obvious this news had rocked her, and he hated that he’d been the cause of her pain and confusion, and couldn’t take her in his arms and swear he’d make it better.
All he could do was whisper, “I’m sorry,” again.
She shook her head and turned toward the door. “Eat your food, Thorne. You have a big night ahead of you.”
There was anger and bitterness in those words, and Thorne groaned as Kit slammed the door behind her. He’d been terrified of this reaction, hadn’t been able to make himself tell her any sooner precisely because he knew what would happen.
But he should have been braver. He should have faced that fear…for her.
“Fook,” Thorne murmured, allowing his head to fall back against the pillows. “Fooking hell.”
What was he going to do?
Chapter 22
Her parents were married.
Kit had moved through the rest of the afternoon in something of a daze, alternating between anger and confusion at the news.
How could Thorne keep something like this from her?
Unable to concentrate on the preparations for the musicale, Kit thankfully turned the management side over to Ellie and retreated to her own small room upstairs. The room she’d been given as a footman, which she had never vacated.
The other male servants’ rooms were around hers, but Titsworth hadn’t suggested she move to the wing with the maids, likely because he knew Kit spent far more time sleeping in the Duke’s chambers.
She’d sat at the small desk and reached for a piece of paper. “Dear Mother…”
What to say?How could you keep such a monumental lie from me all these years?
No, better to keep this letter factual.
In the months since Kit had been in London, she’d writtenher mother each fortnight, not expecting a reply. Her notes were mostly updates on London itself, or Father’s movements.
Kit hadn’t mentioned Thorne as anything more than her employer.
Now, though, she poured out everything.
She told Mother how she’d fallen in love with a duke who had seen her for herself. Not her appearance or her parentage, but her talent and her wit and her heart. The same way she’d fallen for him. Thorne hadn’t cared that she was a nobody; he’d asked her to be his wife all the same.
And he’d kept a secret from her which could change everything. He’d known she was legitimate.
I thought I knew him,Mother. I thought I loved him. But he has kept such a big truth from me on the pretense of allowing me to make my own decisions. You have done the same! How can I make my own decisions if I don’t have all the information? I miss you, Mother, but I’m angry with you as well for keeping this from me.
I’m just angry in general. I still love you, though. I suppose I must still love him. Wish me luck—or rather, as you would say, to ‘break a leg’. Tonight’s the big night.
Kit had stayed hiddenin her room, surprised when Titsworth himself brought up a tray of dinner for her. When she’d scolded him for straining his knees up the stairs, the butler had surprised her by taking her shoulders and smiling softly.
“I am not so old that I can ignore someone else’s pain, my lady. Do you need a hug?”
And, surprised, Kit had accepted the man’s embrace. She wasn’t normally one for hugging, but had to admit that his support felt…good.
Ellie had stopped by as well, to ask if she needed help getting ready. Kit, who’d been staring down at her violin while seated on her bed, looked up at her cousin. “My parents were married,” she announced dully. Everyone would know now, anyway. That newspaper. All over London. “I’m not illegitimate.”
There was a softening around Ellie’s eyes which told Kit her cousin wasn’t entirely surprised.
